Top 5 Baton Rouge records of 2007

The qualifying factors of a great record are not tallied sales and moved units, but in the way they latch onto a listener and linger when the disc is over, and these are the top five that did it for me this year. The task of narrowing it down to just five gets more difficult each year.

Secret Annexe – Seven-Headed Monster (Ocelot Records)

Rob Mulhearn and the six other members can stuff a stage to capacity, but on Seven-Headed Monster careful arrangements and deep pop textures give the guitars, keys, violas and noise enough space to breathe. Like Camper Van Beethoven and Fleetwood Mac before them, Secret Annexe cuts a wide stylistic swath while still sounding like a cohesive unit.

Otasco – Hubris (Apocalypse the Apocalypse)

Luther Gooch, the mastermind behind Otasco, has moved on to more media-saturated pastures in California, but recorded this masterpiece of biting wit and post-punk refracted rock on his way out. Hubris digs into the messier, less Valentine candy, more fights and make-up sex side of human entanglement with humor and frankness. Otasco sounds almost out of time, in that few bands operating today are willing to sound this smart on record. Fred Weaver of Apocalypse the Apocalypse, who worked on four of our top five albums in some capacity for the second year running, said of Hubris, “It’s my favorite record that I’ve ever worked on.”

Wilderness Pangs – The Indivisible Squalor of Wilderness Pangs (Apocalypse the Apocalypse)

The reactions to Wilderness Pangs are divisible. One person described them as “music real musicians have to listen to in hell,” but they definitely leave their mark. Their pop take on noise got the attention of CMJ, who made them a Spotlight Artist on their Web site and then invited them to play at the CMJ Marathon in New York. Their songs mix drones, noises and folk in singular cohesion, exploring both the softer side of weird and the weirder side of soft.

The Way*High Men – Let’s Get Arrested (The Way*High Men)

As indie rock gets wimpier and wimpier, I’m thankful for sleazebags like The Way*High Men for reminding me that rock is supposed to be dirty, is supposed to inspire impure thought and deed. The band muscles through the kind of Thin Lizzy riffery everyone needs in their life, whether they admit it or not. Leather pants and a supped-up Camaro are not a necessity for listening to this music, but they couldn’t hurt.

Spring Break Shark Attack! – Sharkronomicon (Spring Break Shark Attack!)

Surf music has near universal appeal, but you have to do something with it to keep from floating along with the same old wave. Well, hang ten for Satan! Spring Break Shark Attack! pulls in the intricacy and bloodthirstiness for extreme metal on their latest release, unleashing storm and fury enough to close down the beach. It has enough reverb and twang for any surf listener, but don’t be surprised if you go from dancing The Swim to banging your head in record time.

Honorable mentions:

The Eames Era – Heroes + Sheroes (The Eames Era) – They explore wider territory on their follow-up to Double Dutch, without losing the old punch and charm.

Hi-Five – Hi-Five (Hi-Five) – Mature, kinetic, eloquent indie rock. The band to look out for in 2008.

The Benjy Davis Project – Dust (Real/Bogalusa) – The crowd favorite digs in deeper with country-rock hooks and a step up in songwriting. I expect them to pop up on a Hugh Grant movie soundtrack any minute now.